16th August 2017

P R E E T I

"What a major coincidence Priyanka that Preeti is also attending Francoise Dupont College", Sushma aunty said and all the adults laughed. I was seated between Mom and Kriti aunty like a small child who needs to be taken care of. Sushma aunty and Mrs. Couffaine sat opposite from us while the twins sat on separate armchairs, facing each other. I was getting bored of this conversation just like always.

Every Indian adult conversation turns out boring.

I was busy examining the twins for now. How they had styled their hair and how they were dressed up. Juleka was wearing a purple top and white shorts while Luka was wearing a black t-shirt paired with blue jeans and looking insanely han-

Uh-uh. Not again Preeti.

I was mentally scolding myself for admiring Luka's features for what felt like the umpteenth time today. But it wasn't my fault, now was it? Even if I focus on something else, my eyes always travelled back to him even if he was just simply sitting in his chair, completely relaxed. He wasn't an attention seeker, but I can bet on it, that if we were in a room full of people, the spotlight would always be on him. It was his natural charm.

Every now and then laughter erupted in the room while we-the teenagers-continued to remain unfazed by it. Whenever Luka looked at me, I quickly turned my eyes away from him so that he wouldn't notice me staring at him.

Hopefully he didn't notice...

"I think the kids are getting bored. Luka, Juleka why don't you take Preeti to your room", Kriti aunty suggested and winked at me. She was always my lifesaver in boring get-to-togethers, like this one.

"Sure", Luka replied and the three of us got up. I smoothed out my black top and baby pink shorts and followed the twins to their room which was on the second floor.

"And this is our room for the rest of our time here", Luka said whilst opening the door and dramatically bowing to welcome me. I giggled at his actions and entered the room.

There were two beds in the middle with a small side table between them, pushed against the wall. There was a glass window on my left and a balcony on my right. The light blue curtains were dancing on the directions of the wind as the balcony door was left open. The four walls were painted with a light turquoise colour which went well with the white ceiling. There was a drawing of a flock of six black birds flying from the right corner of the room to the centre, on the ceiling. This was a nice guest room.

"I'm going to the washroom. Be right back", Juleka said and went out.

"You can sit here if you want", Luka said and patted the spot next to him on the bed. I complied and sat down on the bed.

He grabbed the guitar that was hanging from a support on the wall.

"You play the guitar?", I asked with evident curiosity in my voice whilst pointing at the black acoustic guitar in his hands.

"Yes. Wanna hear a tune or two?"

I nodded and he strummed a few strings. He started playing a calm, relaxing tune that felt so... familiar. I closed my eyes while my ears focused on the beautiful music being created. I slowly tapped my index finger on my knee to match the rhythm. When the music came to an end, I opened my eyes and looked at him. He was looking at me with a gentle smile on his face.

Was he looking at me all along?

I blushed and fixated my eyes on the glass window which was stained with raindrops.

"So... What do you think of it?"

"How do you do that?"

"Do what?", he asked raising an eyebrow at me, curious as to what I meant to say.

"Play music according to one's mood you know."

"Music is often simpler than words", he spoke in a soothing tone whilst his hand, smoothly brushed his black hair with blue tips, away from his eyes.

"But sometimes words are what makes a song complete", I said and smiled at him.

He titled his head to the side like a cute, confused puppy and I chuckled at his reaction.

"What I meant to say is that without lyrics a song just stays incomplete?", I said and shrugged.

"True."

"What's true?", Juleka said as she suddenly entered the room.

"N-nothing. We were just talking about music", Luka said.

Why did he get nervous?

"So, do you play any musical instruments?", Juleka asked directing the question towards me.

"Yeah. I used to play the piano back in Paris. My dad taught me that. Oh. Wait, do you know abou-"

"Yeah. Luka told me", Juleka said and sat down in a chair, near the window, facing us.

"I can play the acoustic guitar but still a bit of a beginner when it comes to electric guitars", I said and scratched the nape of my neck.

"Hmm. Maybe Luka can teach you that. He's good at playing electric guitars", she said and grinned at Luka.

And this was how we got immersed in a deep conversation about my life and theirs. We shared many of our memorable experiences with each other and had a good laugh whenever the Parisian twins told me about a few pranks they played on their friends. Luka and Juleka had a cool life because they were not stuck with overprotective parents unlike me. But they were also interested in my life and the Indian culture I grew up in.

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"How's the dinner dear?", asked Sushma aunty.

"It's delicious, really", I replied. We were seated at the dining table, with Mom on my left and Luka on my right. If Luka hadn't been a bit, insistent about sitting on my right, Sushma aunty would have taken the seat next to me and I would have gotten bored, yet again. Mine and Luka's hands seldom brushed against each other whenever we went to grab a bowl from the table to serve ourselves. We were exchanging a few jokes or witty remarks before filling our mouths with aloo-paratha. Juleka, who was sitting opposite to Luka, would often raise an eyebrow at us whenever we tried to hide our laughter. The adults were having their own conversation about their jobs, workplaces, politics and all the other boring topics, people their age like to talk about.

"Are we going for sightseeing tomorrow?", Luka suddenly raised the question.

"I'm sorry dear. But, for tomorrow as well as the day after, there's a high chance of a bad weather", Sushma aunty replied.

"Then what about on weekends?", Juleka asked.

"Jule. Aunty has to work on the weekends...remember?", Luka said and shoved another piece of paratha in his mouth.

How does he eat so much and yet stay so fit?

"What if Preeti shows them around?", Kriti aunty suggested.

"Wait what?" Where did I pop up from in this conversation?

"Since she doesn't have to give her pre-selection exams next month, she can show them around on the weekends. What do you think Priyanka?"

Mom swallowed her food and said, "No."

Great. Straightaway, No.

"I think it's a great idea Mom. I can also ask Aisha and Abhi to join us", I said hoping that she would say yes because I didn't want to be stuck at home, having nothing to do but stare at the ceiling the whole day.

"Preeti. You don't have to give your exams but your friends have to."

"Mom. The three of us finished our syllabuses back in July, even when you and dad didn't mention anything about me moving to Paris. I'm sure Mrs. Joshi won't mind either."

"Fine", my Mom said and got back to finishing her food while I was dancing in victory... on the inside.

"I's settled then. Maybe Saturday will do", Sushma aunty said, relieved that a burden had been lifted off from her shoulders.

"Sure. But I'll have to tell my friends first about this."

"Well. That means we are having a fun Saturday!", Luka said with a beaming smile on his face.

Time passed so quickly that I did not even realise when Mom, my aunt and I were already standing at the door, wishing them a goodnight. We started walking towards home. I looked back one last time and locked eyes with Luka. I gave him a smile and he reciprocated the gesture.

At the end of the day, I must say,

It was a day well spent.

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So how was it?

As I said my updates won't be periodic anymore and I'll update when I can due to... Infinite Projects!

P.S. Picture taken from Pinterest and doesn't belong to me.

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